Pomeroy pays the new price for a shoulder charge

Cronulla Sharks player Ben Pomeroy will miss Sunday's National Rugby League elimination final against Canberra after he was handed a two-game suspension for a shoulder charge on North Queensland star Johnathan Thurston.

Pomeroy was the first player tried under strict new guidelines regarding the shoulder charge, introduced last week by the ARL Commission, after his hit on Thurston in last Sunday's loss to North Queensland.

Players are now sent straight to the judiciary without being graded as part of the commission's crack down on players who make contact with the head or neck with a shoulder charge.